In line with international efforts against piracy, the Iranian Navy has been conducting patrols in international waters including India, Sri Lanka, the Equator, the islands of Indonesia, Straits of Malacca, the South China Sea, the Pacific Ocean, the Suez Canal, Gulf of Aden, the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea and the South and North Indian Ocean.
The 35th fleet, comprising Bandar Abbas logistic warship and Alvand destroyer which had set sail for the high seas in June, returned back home this morning from a 3-month overseas mission.
Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said that the purposes of such routine missions is to ensure security for vessels in the shipping lines, fight against piracy and hoist the flag of Iran in high seas.
The Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008, when Somali raiders hijacked the Iranian-chartered cargo ship, MV Delight, off the coast of Yemen.
According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia against the pirates and even with prior notice to Somali government enter the territorial waters of that country in pursuit of Somali sea pirates.
The Gulf of Aden - which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea - is an important energy corridor, particularly because Persian Gulf oil is shipped to the West via the Suez Canal.
PH/ 2916988
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